People think Tom Cruise's new movie Digger is hiding that it's really a musical

A writer's theory that Tom Cruise's upcoming movie is "secretly a musical" has gained so much traction on social media that it's had to be debunked. Jason Pargin took to X earlier this week to share his prediction, and it quickly garnered hundreds of responses, as well as tens of thousands of Likes.

Digger, a black comedy directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu, sees Cruise playing oil tycoon Digger Rockwell, and is released in cinemas next month.

"My favorite conspiracy theory right now is that Digger is secretly a musical and they’re desperately trying to hide it in the marketing," Pargin wrote on Thursday (10 September).

Related: Best streaming services

One response said: "Now that you said it, some of those clips do look like pieces of musical dance numbers!! Oh my gosh lol."

Another quipped: "Uh now that you mention it"; while a third said: "I WANT THIS TO BE THE CASE SO BAD!!!!!!!!!"

Since Pargin's post, Variety has reported that two sources familiar with the production have firmly denied that Digger is a musical - for better or for worse.

If it was the case, it certainly wouldn't be Cruise's first foray into the genre: he was in Rock of Ages in 2012.

Related: UK film release dates

Digger teams Cruise up with an all-star supporting cast, including Riz Ahmed, John Goodman, Sandra Hüller, Jesse Plemons and Emma D'Arcy.

Speaking earlier this year, the A-lister called his role "a real leap into the unknown". “It took all of my knowledge, from all of the years of every film I made, to be able to play this character and fulfill the ambition of this movie,” he told Empire.

He also revealed that director Iñárritu read the script to him aloud over several meetings.

“I’ve always done that," he said. "I want the writer to read me his idea, because then I can see where we’re going. We’re exploring rhythms, and I’m feeling the world. I’m literally an audience. I want to hear his voice. I want to understand, and see the world the way he sees it."

Digger arrives in cinemas on 2 October.

Visit our Streaming Guide now to see at a glance where you can view ALL your favourite shows and movies.

Shaun is an Evening News Editor at Digital Spy, with over a decade of experience reporting on all things pop culture. He has written for outlets including Metro, Attitude, Huffington Post, The Mirror, Yahoo!, Pink News and Express Online, specialising in TV, movies, soaps, music and LGBTQ+ issues. He is also a BAFTA Rocliffe-winning scriptwriter, having written episodes of the soap Hollyoaks, the official Steps musical Here & Now and multiple Offie Award-nominated plays. He studied English Literature and Drama at the University of East Anglia, and will happily talk at length about Desperate Housewives to anyone who'll listen.